The Wedding
by CrayolaBox16
Summary: Who better to play matchmaker between two people than Uncle Iroh? Zutara with a bit of Taang. Pink here!*complete*
1. The Plan

Contrary to popular belief, Iroh was not a stupid man.

He knew many people thought of him as a fat, jolly man, oblivious of the world beyond tea and pai-sho. Gone were the days he was considered the fire nation's greatest strategist, smartest and most skilled general. The title of the dragon of the west has been forgotten. After the war, he was merely the old man who helped in saving Ba Sing Sei.

Not that what people believe was true. Quite the opposite in fact. His mind was still harp as a blade, his eyes still fully aware of what's happening around him. He was not sightless to anything, not even his nephew's infatuation for a certain water bender.

No, he was not unaware of the shy glances the he shot her way. He was not blind to the quick reddening of the young fire lord's pale cheeks whenever the girl would absentmindedly touch him. The stuttering did not help hide it, of course.

He knew Zuko was a special young man. His experience with women was not always every pretty, especially with the sweet little girl he once took on a date. Zuko's banishment caused his opportunities with women his age be hindered. Iroh understood that.

The boy needed a push. And who better to do that than his uncle? It would be easy – compared to all the battle strategies Iroh has been swamped with because of the war – all he needed was the betrothed couple and perfect timing.

And maybe some tea.

* * *

It was no surprise that Sokka would ask Suki to marry him. It was a constant the group held on to dearly, something to look forward to. What the real surprise was where Sokka's has chosen to have the ceremonies.

Everyone stare at Sokka, their mouths agape. They looked at him as though he had grown an extra head.

Sokka merely look at them with mild amusement. Iroh had warned him about this.

"Well?" he inquired innocently. "What do you think?"

They merely continued to stare at him in silence, bewilderment still etched upon their features.

"Wh-why?" Katara asked, still in shock.

"Well it's near Kyoshi Island so it's good for Suki and dad's still healing up so going home is going to be a problem. It's the best option."

"What about Gran-Gran?"

"Master Pakku said he'd take care of it."

They turned their gaze towards Zuko, who, like them, was surprised by the news.  
"I still don't see _why_ you'd do it there but okay, I guess." Zuko said, "I don't have anything to do with it anyway."

Sokka beamed at them. "Good, 'cause there's a lot of things we need to do before we can get that place presentable and you guys are going to help me." The whole group groaned when Sokka presented them with a scroll even longer than the one he used for their schedule.

0~0~0~0~

"I'm the fire lord, the leader of my own nation. I DON'T SEE WHY I SHOULD BE DOING THIS!" Zuko angrily screamed, blasting dire high above him.

He, along with everyone else in the group, was on his knees, scrubbing away the courtyard he and Aang used for practice during their stay in the Ember Island beach house.

He was surprised Sokka had chosen that place for his wedding. He, himself, did not hold any happy memories in the house, let alone the water tribesman. But Sokka was pretty adamant when Zuko spoke to him after the group left when he announced his desired place for his wedding.

"I don't want to trouble anyone with traveling to the South Pole." He reasoned with Zuko. "And big celebrations with guys aren't really a thing in Kyoshi Island."

Zuko was regretting his decision when he was in the courtyard, on all fours, a sponge in one hand and a bucket of water in the other. It was apparently tradition for the men coming from the Southern Water Tribe to do all the manual labor required before the ceremonies. This included cleaning and decorating the courtyard for the ceremonies. Zuko had to fire every one of the helpers working in the house.

"Oh, shut up, Sparky." Toph said from her corner. Futilely, she threw Zuko a wet sponge, only to have it land three feet away from him. "You're the one who agreed to this. This is all your fault."

"C'mon guys, it's not all bad." Zuko looked up to see Aang. He, to Zuko's dismay, strapped two wet sponges on his feet. Aang took a deep breath and, without another word, shot off from his spot and started to skate.

Zuko was not sure whether he considered the Avatar an idiot or a genius as he skated around the courtyard. He was certainly cleaning the place a lot faster than they were a few moments ago. Aang let out a cheer of laughter as he swerved away from Toph, casing a giant wave of soapy water to land on the girl.

"Oh, you're ganna get it!" she laughed. She started to bend the ground Aang was staking on, making large, totem-like structures to pop onto his path. Aang took this as a challenge. Swerving, jumping over, and even destroying the things using air bending.

Zuko stood up and retreated towards the shaded pathway, watching the two. Aang gleefully skated around with ease, narrowly avoiding the obstacles Toph kept sending his way. Every now and then, Zuko would hear the two comment on how weak the other was or on how easy the other was making it for them.

A small smile crept through his features; it was almost a relied to see Aang like this. Back to his normal, joyful self. Far from the young man Zuko saw after the war; tired, worn-out with lines on his face that he only previously saw on his uncle. The laughter and the light teasing was a comfort to hear.

"They're cute, aren't they?"

Zuko turned to see Katara standing right beside him, her eyes glued to the couple in front of them. Her features, Zuko was certain, mirrored his.

He turned his gaze back to the two. Aang and Toph merely continued their little game, oblivious of the people around, watching them under an amused gaze.

"Oh, to be young again." She sighed.

Zuko smirked at her. "You make it sound like we're a thousand years old."

"We might as well be." She said, her eyes never tearing away from the two. "You know the first thing I thought of this morning? Whether or not Appa was feed and if Sokka finally cleaned his ceremonial clothes" she let out another tired sigh. "I miss the days when all I had to worry about was; if the snow outside deep enough for me to burry Sokka's boomerangs."

"It could be worse."

"What could possibly be worse than worrying about getting Sokka's clothes clean?"

"You could be buried under a ton of paper work every day." He said dryly.

"I almost forgot, Mister Sparkypants here is Mister Fire lord now. Well, at least you have Mrs. Fire lord to keep you in good company."

Zuko shot her a confused look. Did uncle marry him off when he was heavily sedated after the war?

"Mai." Katara said, after seeing Zuko's look.

A look of realization dawned on him. He quickly let out a bitter laugh and said "If company you mean an unending stream of complaints then yes, I am in good company."

Before Katara could retort, Zuko continued. "And it's not like you're alone here either." He indicated the two who were still fighting in front of him, now using their bending skills to their limit.

"Yeah, it's like having Sokka as a kid again."

"You mean-"

"Yup."

"So the Ember Island Players were-"

"Yup."

"But I thought you-"

"I don't want to talk about it." She said tiredly. Before he could stop himself, a small feeling of hope spread around him. He quickly caught himself and shook it off. She finally faced him and said "C'mon, we should stop them before they get mud everywhere."

Zuko and Katara were too busy pacifying the situation that they were totally unaware of the two pairs of eyes watching over them.

"Thank you for giving me this opportunity to help my nephew gain the happiness he denies himself." Iroh said, chuckling as he saw Zuko and Katara stand beside each other. The two an almost _parental_ aura around them as they stood over the two younger benders. Her hands were on her hips, cocked over on side while Zuko had his over his chest, his eyebrow undoubtedly raised.

"And thank _you_ for giving me all the fire nation's ceremonial swords." Sokka replied.

They continued to watch the scene below them. Aang and Toph were staring at the ground as Zuko and Katara spoke to them. They looked like two kids receiving retribution from their parents. This was funny to watch seeing as, technically, Aang was the oldest among them.

"What's your plan now?" Sokka asked, breaking the silence.

"Young man, one does not wait for fate to strike, sometimes, one must impose his own will to shape destiny."

With that, Iroh walked away, leaving a bewildered Sokka at his wake.

* * *

HEY! Well, technically this is my third Avatar fanfic but this is the only one I'm proud of. I think. Anyway, tell me what you think of it. :)

Disclaimer: If I owned Avatar, Zutara would have been end game.


	2. Without Even Trying

"I know what you're doing."

A smile danced on Iroh's lips. He calmly blew on his cup of tea, his gaze still locked on the beautiful scenery outside his window.

The gang was done fixing up the courtyard for the wedding. Everyone had retreated to the dining hall for dinner. All except one.

"Well done, Miss Beifong." He said, without turning to face her. "It seems like my battle strategies are not as stealthy as it used to be."

"Battle strategies?" Toph exploded at the old man. "This isn't a war! These are the feeling of two people, your nephew being one of them!"

"Ah, but is love not a battle field in itself?"

Toph had the look of utter confusion painted on her face. She quickly shook herself out of it, anger settling on her features once more.

"Why are you doing this?" She demanded.

Iroh slowly turned to face her, his face unreadable. "Miss Beifong, are you aware of how stubborn your friends are?"

Toph's angry resolve faltered, caught off guard by his question. "Uh, yeah. Isn't everyone?" she smirked; memories of her friends as they trained for the war swirled in her mind.

"And are you also aware of how – for the lack of better word for it – blind your friends can get?"

"Oh, you said it."

"Sometimes, your friends need a little help for them to see something perfect that's right under their noses."

All of Toph's anger drained from her, leaving only confusion in its wake. "But why them?" her voice was barely out of a whisper. "Aang and Katara are like written in the stars."

"The starts are often wrong, miss Beifong." Iroh said. "I, myself, thought my destiny was to hold Ba Sing Sei under the Fire Nation's power and look at me now!" he smiled broadly at her only to be met by confusion.

"But Katara and Zuko couldn't be more opposite from each other."

"And in the opposition of forces do we find balance."

"But they're-"

"Too stupid and stubborn to admit they like someone, let alone someone they used to hate."

The two turned to see Sokka standing by the door way Toph left open. The confusion in her features quickly turned to disbelief.

"You knew the whole time?"

Sokka walked over to the two, a smile on his lips. "Well, it is _my_ wedding"

Toph's mouth hung in a very unladylike fashion. Iroh half expected drool to fall out. She quickly composed herself and said. "I can't tell if you guys are genius or suicidal cause I swear they're ganna kill you when they find out."

The two men smiled at her, as if they didn't hear her speak the truth.

"We prefer geniuses." Sokka smugly said.

"But Katara and Aang!" Toph insisted.

"Are nothing but friends." Iroh paused, his smile grew bigger. "And from what I heard, the young Avatar had his heart set on particular earth bender."

A blush started to spread through Toph's features. With a smile and a stomp of her foot, she sent two strong waves to Sokka and Iroh's direction, causing the two men to stumble and land on their bottoms.

"What was that for?"Sokka complained as the two scrambled to get up, rubbing their behind in the process.

"That's how I show affection." She said. "Oh, and I'm in."

"Excellent!" Iroh said, clamping his warm, giant hand behind Sokka and Toph. "Now, young ones, I think we're due for dinner."

* * *

Zuko silently walked along the sandy beaches of Ember Island, the full moon high above him. Without his minister tiring him out to the brink of unconsciousness, he couldn't sleep. Nightmare after nightmare filled his brain, causing him to scream himself awake every time he slept without exhaustion.

He considered these dreams as the war's worst effect on him. Every time he tried to sleep he would dream of the most terrible scenarios. Losing the people he cared of every time. His uncle, his friends, _her._

He let out an almost bitter laugh. She was not his to protect. Not that she needed protection in the first place. Also, she was merely a friend, right? Just another beautiful smile that passed him by. She was not his to . _Yet. _He wished she was, even for a little while.

He walked farther into the beach, only to find Appa's sleeping figure. Zuko was not surprised to see Aang sleeping at his bison's side. The boy thrashed from side to side, his face contorted in rage. He kept muttering in his sleep. '_Of course, he was also plague with nightmares.'_ Zuko thought as he watched Aang helplessly, debating on whether to wake the boy or not. '_He was one of the war's biggest victims'_

Zuko slowly approached the restless figure, deciding that if it was him, he'd want to be woken up. He was about to crouch down to wake Aang when he heard her.

"Shhh."

He immediately whipped around; his defensive position reflexively went up. He blinked at her, surprised she was there. She was in her usual water bending garb, a glove of water encased her palm. She bent down to Aang's head, the water slowly covering the Avatar's head.

Slowly, Katara closed her eyes, her focus solely on the thrashing boy. Zuko started to look away when the water started glowing fiercely, practically unbearable to watch. When the light receded, he returned his gaze towards Aang, whose facial expression returned his old, calm self.

"I leaned that I could bend the blood into someone's brain into relaxing a week after the war"

Side by side, the two figures sat by the beach, the water softly lapping at their feet. For the first time in a while, Zuko was relaxed. He could feel the stress and tension finally start to seep away from his body. Katara kept her gaze trained on the moon slowly rising above them while Zuko silently watched her.

"I use it whenever Toph or Aang have bad dreams, which, after the war, happens every night."

"Can you use it on yourself?"

"If I could, I would be asleep right now." She smiled somewhat bitterly at him.

"It could be worse." Zuko said, crossing his arms over his head and lying down on the soft, grainy sand.

"What could possibly be worse than this?" She asked, following suit and lying down beside him. "It's almost mid-night and I'm here wide awake 'cause I'm scared to fall asleep."

"Well, you could be Suki. After she marries Sokka, it's guaranteed she won't be able to sleep because of his snoring."

To his surprise, Katara laughed. Not a small giggle, not a short hearty chuckle, not even her usual soft-almost-melodic laugh but a full blown; clutching-her-stoach-tears-falling-down-her-face-usually-unattractive-but-oddly-pulled-off-look laugh. It was when he nose started dripping that he joined her. It wasn't long before the two were rolling around in the sand, their laughter so loud they were surprised no one woke up from hearing it.

"I can't believe it." Katara said when they finally calmed down and regained their breaths. They kneeled in front of each other, still clutching their stomachs. Her smile was the biggest he has ever seen.

"Can't believe what?"

"You're funny." Her look was slightly crazed; sand stuck to her hair and face, her smile was big and toothy, her ocean blue eyes large and unblinking. Zuko didn't know whether he was frightened or amused. "You're funny now. Everyone in our group is funny except me." She narrowed her eyes at him. "It's a conspiracy isn't it? Make everyone funny and leave me not." She shot him a glare and stuck her tongue out.

Zuko merely smirked and lied back down. "It's not my fault I can make people laugh and you can't"

Katara loomed over his lying body and glared. "I can make people laugh."

"No you can't. And do you know why?"

"Why?"

"Cause that's your role in the group. Aang's the carefree one, Sokka's planner guy, Toph's the sarcastic tough girl and you're the mom who tries to make a joke and no one laughs."

"Oh yeah? And who are you? The sexy, mysterious guy in the background? Please." She scoffed and rolled her eyes.

Zuko raised his eyebrow. "I would go for the man of a few words but I guess you're right too." He laughs nervously.

Color started to flood her cheeks, finally realizing what she had said. She sat back down on her heels and started mentally stabbing herself. It was some time before Zuko spoke again. "You're still not funny."

"I am!" she said indignantly.

"Oh yeah? Try me."

Zuko continued to watch the moon as Katara thought. From behind him, he could her mutter under her breath. It took a few moments before she popped back in his line of vision, her face painted in excitement.

"Mhm?"

"Why did the mushroom go to the party?"

"Why?"

"Because he was a fungi! Get it? Fun guy? Fungi?" Katara loudly laughed at her own joke while Zuko merely looked in mild amusement.

"You can try and try but face it; you can't make people laugh."

Katara returned in his line of sight. A smirk played on her lips. "Well, what if I tried this?"

She started pinching and poking his sides, causing his to let out a bark like laugh. He immediately started to back away from her. She smiled evilly, resembling Azula right before she battled Zuko and Katara during the war. Slowly, he started getting up, as though any sudden movement would provoke her for an attack. Zuko wasn't even fully standing up when Katara tackled him to the ground.

The two rolled around in the sand, laughing as they tried to pin each other down to tickle them. Their laughter echoed all around the beach. Even briefly waking up Appa, causing him to growl and go back to sleep.

The two collapsed in silence, lying side by side as they tried - once again - to regain their breath. They were covered in sweat, sand clung to places he didn't even know existed. He glanced at the person beside him and couldn't help but smile.

Zuko prayed to the moon, hoping that it wouldn't sink and end the night.

The two were oblivious of their surroundings. Not even noticing the very obvious bushes laughing at them from a short distance.

"It's like we don't even have to try." Sokka said smugly, raising his hand for a high five only to realize the girl he's next to is blind. He lowered his hand and tried to pretend it didn't happen. He silently stood up and pulled Toph with him. "C'mon, we need to report back to Iroh."

* * *

Yes, it's a bit OOC but I just had to make it lighter. The whole nightmares thing was going into a dark turn I was not prepared to write. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed! I really loved the constructive criticism people comment, I've fixed the first chapter in the way they suggested and I truly think it's better. I hope you enjoyed!

**READ AND REVIEW**!


	3. Big Brother

"I still don't get it."

Toph and Sokka sat on the floor, outside Iroh's room; awaiting word from the old man about the mission for that day.

"Don't get what?" Sokka asked distractedly, sharpening his boomerang with the bottom of his boot.

"I understand why Iroh's helping them but why would you?"

Sokka let out a sigh and set his boomerang down. "You don't know what it's like to be so happy with someone and you turn to see your sister with a fake smile on her face."

"She was happy with Aang." Toph said softly.

"Why do you keep insisting on that?" Sokka smirked at her.

Slight color flooded her cheeks, "Just saying what I know." Toph shrugged.

"I think Aang and Katara got together because everyone expected them to not because they wanted to."

"And do you think Katara wants Zuko?"

"More than she's willing to admit."

"How would you know? I hardly think she'd tell you."

"The way they look at each other is just so intense."

"I totally agree."

"See, I-" Sokka finally realized what Toph said, he turned to face her. "Why do you hate me?"

Toph laughed. "You make it so easy." She paused, "And what ever happened to protective-big-brother Sokka?"

"Hey! I just want my baby sister happy and if that involves playing matchmaker to her and a temperamental Fire Lord then so be it. And who knows." Sokka started to smile, his voice turned teasing. "If this goes good, maybe I could help you and Aang."

Toph balled up her fist and punched Sokka hard, toppling him over.

"Aw." Sokka said as he spread his arms open, hoping to envelope her into a hug. "You're showing affection."

Toph stopped him from encasing her in a hug by placing her palm on his forehead. "No, you're just being annoying."

Sokka backed away and started to rub his arm, where Toph punched him but his tone was light. "So how are you and Aang?"

"There's nothing to talk about."

"C'mon, you can't seriously-"

"Don't make me punch you again."

"It's just that-"

Before Sokka continued, Toph whipped her head to the up. "Iroh!" she greeted, relived by the appearance of the retired general. "So what's the plan today?"

Iroh smiled at her and calmly blew on his tea. He slowly turned to Sokka. "Young man, do you know if your future wife would be interested in joining our cause?"

000000000000000

Zuko knew the spirits hated him. He knew that very, _very, _well. During his travels, he would often imagine the spirits high above him, taking turns on who would bully him next. When the war ended, he thought maybe the spirits would lighten up on him but they did not. _Sozin_ _must be in charge of my spirit_, Zuko once thought deliriously as he was about to pass out of exhaustion from working so much.

As he woke up on the beach after spending the night there, he knew the spirits were once again punishing him for his past crimes, or Sozin punishing him for being against his father. Either way, the spirits wanted him as unhappy as he can be, starting with that morning.

He blinked his eyes open, the morning sun was barely peaking out of the night sky. The turned his head from side to side, cursing as he realized that he had once again fallen asleep on his stomach. But it was not from that he knew that the spirits hated him with passion, not even when he woke up with sand clinging to his tongue, it was when he turned his head to the side to find Katara, lying down beside him; looking like every bit of an angel he thought she was.

'_Damn this world¸'_ he thought. _'This was exactly what I wanted to avoid!'_

He looked down; they were not touching except the hands. Their hands overlapped each others, her middle finger resting lightly on his pulse. He wouldn't be surprised if she would wake up exactly at that moment because it was beating erratically.

He started to slowly slip away from her grasp, hoping he could just escape from this situation and forget about it completely. Zuko was about to turn away and run when he heard her.

"What are you doing?" Her voice was hoarse from sleep, her grip slightly tightened around his wrist.

_To get as far away from you as I can because this is seriously not helping my situation of forgetting you and your stupidly charming personality and idiotically magical beauty._ "Just to meditate. You know, the whole rising with the sun thing." He lied, slightly tripping on his words. Katara immediately loosened her grip on him, stretching her arms above her head.

He sat cross-legged under the rising sun, warming him up for the day. He could feel her lazily stretching around, refusing to leave him. He sighed, looked up to the sun and prayed. '_Oh dear spirits, WHY? WHY ARE YOU PUNISHING ME SO MUCH? I was perfectly fine before this blasted wedding; I would wake up, meditate, work, refuse to eat, more work, drink the minimum requirement to live, more work, argue with my misters, more work, pass out on my bed and repeat. My time was not, and should not be, spent pathetically pinning for someone! I survived my an Agni Kai with my father, banishment, fighting my own sister and the work that has to be done to bring back honor to my nation yet this, _this_ brings me to my edge. Because I know whatever I do, however hard I work, nothing will happen. She is not mine and she will never be. So dear Spirits, I ask you to smite me, right here, right now. I never give up but this is a situation I can no longer handle. Everything happening seems like it's mocking me. Like a cat being taunted with a toy he can't have. At least stop with the taunting, let her be with Aang or Haru or someone. May the people rise like the sun and stay as enlightened as it is. _

He prayed the last part with particular reverence, it being the only Fire Nation blessing he still uses.

Thankfully, Katara had left when he looked back to her. He was free to return to what he was good at, sulk in his room. It was late afternoon when the Spirits decided to torture him some more.

He sat on his bed, leisurely reading the scrolls he brought from work; it said something about the release of incorrectly arrested prisoners of war. He sighed; this was the main bulk of his work now.

"ZUKOOOOO!" His uncle called from his room. Zuko panicked, '_WAS HE IN TROUBLE? WERE THOSE WHO WERE FAITHFUL TO OZAI ATTACKING?'_ He quickly ran, only finding Iroh calmly drinking tea with Suki and Katara, who – for some odd reason – stood awkwardly.

He finally caught his breath and looked at him expectantly. "Yes?"

"Would you please lead these lovely ladies towards the vault? Miss Suki here would like to borrow some jewelry for the wedding."

"If-if it's okay with you?" Suki asked nervously.

"Yeah, no one uses them anyway." His breath caught but luckily no one noticed.  
Suki excitedly turned to Katara. "C'mon Katara, let's make me pretty."

Zuko silently lead them through approximately a million hallways, each going deeper and deeper into the base of the house.

"My mother preferred keeping her jewelry here." Zuko explained as they went farther down, his gaze never leaving the path in front of him. "She said she never really trusted the people in the palace. I guess I should have seen that as clue to what's happening right?" he let out a bitter laugh. He led them to a dead end.

A giant wall stood in their way, on it was a giant four by four grid. Each block painted a beautiful tinge of gold. Zuko took a deep breath, he had not done this for a while; he was afraid he already forgot it. He started punching each block with arrangement, his hard knuckles banging noisily against the wall. He punched the last block and it sank deep into the wall, he kept his fist there as the wall to their side started to slide open.

"Go." He ordered through gritted teeth, "I'll keep the door open."

"Wait, Zuko, let me." Suki said, let quickly pushed Zuko off his spot from the wall and copies his position on the block he was pressing hard to. "It's most likely Katara and I'll just get lost in there. Katara, you know what I'm looking for."

When the two tried to argue with her, she aimed a kick at Zuko, who – with Katara behind him – topped into the room. "Stop wasting time!"

Zuko sadly lost his balance when Suki kicked him. He tripped on his own feet and painfully landed on Katara. He looked down to see her blushing furiously. Before he could even scramble off of her, he heard the door slide shut behind him.

_Dear Spirits, why do you hate me?_

0000000000000000000

"How would we know what's happening down there?" Sokka asked as he watched Zuko, Katara and Suki disappear through the numerous hallways.

"Follow me." Iroh said, he lead them to the master bedroom. The room was large and dusty, each corner of it was draped with fire nation decorations.

"Sweet." Sokka whistled when he entered. "Why doesn't Sparky sleep here?"

"My nephew prefers sleeping in his own room, where Ozai's presence does not hang so strongly." He explains. Iroh opens the closet door and pulls out a long tube. "Sokka, I think you will enjoy this."

He moves to the side to let Sokka inspect the tube.  
"Ursa, Zuko's mother, never trusted the people who worked for Ozai – with all the right reasons too. When she asked to place the vault of her jewelry and other belongings she was still untrusting of the people who worked here. What she did was to create a series of tubes that leads to the vault, each corner dawning a mirror-"

"So each corner could reflect the previous image and would show you what's happening in the vault!" Sokka finished excitedly "THIS IS GENIUS!"

"Yes, Ursa was." Iroh said, a smile on his lips as he blew on his tea.

"Someone's opening the door! Look! Look!"

"That would be great!" Toph said sarcastically, swiping her hand over her face. "Blind remember?"

"Uh, I was talking to Iroh."

Toph embarrassedly ducked her head. "I know. I was talking to Iroh too."

"Okay, uh, the door opened, they look like they're arguing. Oh, Katara's falling inside with, is that Zuko? IS THAT ZUKO ON TOP OF MY LITTLE SISTER? GET OFF HER, JERKBENDER!" Sokka shouted through the tube, earning bizarre looks from Iroh and Toph.

Sokka swallowed and looked down. "Yeah, don't worry I can't control myself."

* * *

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A huge thank you to those who review the previous chapter, I love how you guys challenge me to write in a logical non-ooc way, hopefully I accomplished that.:) Thank you!


	4. Waiting

"Okay, Suki just told them she 'accidentally' closed the door" Sokka narrated as he peered down the pipe. "Jerkbender's punching the door. YOU AREN'T COMING OUT NOW ARE YOU! And now they're stuck!" Sokka proudly said. He aimed a high-five at Toph until he remembered she was not in the position to return them. He embarrassedly lowered his hand and turned to Iroh, smiling broadly. "Mission complete, sir!" he added, throwing a salute to his way.

Iroh let out a chuckle as he lowered himself to a plush arm chair, softly blowing hi tea in the process.

"So, uh, what now?" Toph asked.

"Like the great benders of your element; we will wait and listen." And with that, Iroh promptly fell asleep, tea at hand.

Sokka and Toph turned to one another and shrugged.

* * *

Zuko leaned his forehead on the wall; his fist – red and weak from the continuous banging – was raised to his side. '_Why'_ he thought _'Why here? Why now?'_

A hand rested lightly on his shoulder, he turned to face Katara, a smile on her lips. "C'mon, I bet Suki's asking your uncle the code right nw." she said brightly.

"Stop looking so hopeful" he muttered, as though annoyed by her optimism.

Katara let out a sigh, "Let's just do what we came here for okay? Maybe Suki would be back by then."

The vault was bigger than Zuko had remembered. Each wall of the entire room was lined up with jewelry and ornaments of different kinds. The whole room adorned a distinct golden touch to it. Bellow the shelves were giant jars filled to the rim with gold coins. At the back of the room was a row of beautiful gowns, encased in glass boxes. Above them, a portrait hung on the wall.

In the center of the portrait sat a tall, handsome man. His face taunt and smug, looking as though he owned the world. His wife stood at his side, smiling serenely. She was very beautiful; a kind of ageless elegance graced her features. To her left was her son, trying so hard to mimic his father but a shadow of doubt clouded his features. A small girl stood beside the son, looking nothing like the mother. She was beautiful, yes but she did not bare the sense of peace the older woman had. In her eyes was a hurricane, darkening every aspect of her, on her lips was smirk, making her features contort into that of an evil siren.

"That's a beautiful portrait." Katara breathed as she gaped at it.

Zuko momentarily looked up from the shelf he was searching from. "Yes, yes, my family used to look good before everyone turned out psychotic." He said, waving his hand dismissively. "Can we now return to the task at hand? I can't shake the feeling we're being watched."

She rolled her eyes at him. "Whatever you say."

"This one?"

"No, that doesn't match her robes."

Eye roll. "This one then."

"You're kidding right?"

This kind of conversation was almost like a pattern to them, he would point at a random piece of jewelry, only to have it readily rejected by Katara.

"JUST CHOOSE ONE!" he nearly shouted at her in annoyance as she once again, rejected a necklace. "Dear sages, woman! It's just a necklace."

She slowly turned to face him, baring a look of crazed annoyance. Her eyes gigantic and unblinking, twitching lightly. Her lip curled in a frown.

"Just a necklace?" she repeated in a low tone, the calm before the storm. "ARE YOU REALLY AS STUPID AS YOU LOOK? THIS IS FOR GER WEDDING! POSSIBLY ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT DAYS OF HER LIFE AND YOU WANT HER TO WEAR _JUST_ A NECKLCE?"

Zuko shrunk back when Katara finished screaming, panting as she tried to regain her breath.

"Sorry," Katara's calm demeanor finally return to her. "This is just very stressful."

"Yeah, uhm, it's okay." He said rubbing the back of his neck. "Sorry I snapped too."

She nodded at him then looked around. "Where the next set?"

"That was the last one." A small smile played on his lips. "The fire nation is sorry they couldn't fulfill your need"

"Great." Katara glumly said, sitting on a wooden bench, her shoulders slumped. "We're stuck here and we can't even find Suki a necklace." She drummed her fingers on the benching, thinking of their next move.

"Huh," Zuko said, slowly approaching the spot where Katara was sitting, bending down to the bench's level. "I never knew this was hallow." He knocked on it a few times.

She got off the bench and helped Zuko opened it. He was disappointed to find only scrolls inside. Katara, however, was very interested.

"It's probably why dad's files or something." He mumbled, taking a seat on the floor next to Katara as she went through the hallowed out bench.

" 'The fire ferrets and the White Falls Wolfbats'" She read aloud from one scroll. "I don't think these are your father's files."

Confusedly, Zuko turned and got another scroll from the box. " 'The Story of Oma-Shu'" He read, a small, sad smile graced his face. "These were the stories my mom use to read to me and Azula before we'd go to bed. I can't believe she kept this."

He could feel Katara watch him carefully as went through the wooden box, going through scroll after scroll. He felt like a child as he lifted each scroll with reverence, never having felt his mother's presence this strong in such a while, it felt like he was drowning in nostalgia.

"Her name was Ursa." He said softly, before Katara could ask. He kept his eyes trained on the scroll in front of him, not daring to look at the sad blue eyes watching him. "She was banished when I was younger, she was trying to protect me."

He felt small, delicate arms encircle his torso from behind, her head leaning on his shoulder. "We'll find her," she said, her voice soft but firm. "You helped me avenge my mother and I'll help you find yours."

He nodded, his breath catching ever so lightly. And for a moment, he let himself enjoy the present. He forgot his work, his stress, even the fact that they were stuck in an increasingly cold vault. What only mattered was her and her warmth and her presence.

000000000

The two sat on the floor, side by side, their backs leaning on the wall behind them. The box filled with scrolls sat in the middle.

"Huh, I've never heard this one before." Katara said, handing him the scroll, her face scrunching up in a yawn.

"'When the Day Met the Night' this used to be my favorite." He said, taking hold of the scroll, surprised by how heavy the scroll was. Confused he carefully shook it out causing a small pendent to appear. Katara lazily rested her head on the box, using her arms as a cushion, as she watched Zuko carefully twirl the necklace in his hands. It was a circular gem, carved into shape the sun and it its center was a crescent moon. It was beautifully golden, twinkling ever so lightly as Zuko handed it to Katara, who tiredly inspected it.

"This is actually perfect for Suki" She said softly.

"I see how very excited you are."

"Shut up." She grumbled, momentarily burning her head in her arms "I'm tired."

"Go to sleep."

"Tell me a story. Tell me _that _story." She pointed lazily at the scroll he was holding.

"What? NO! Read it yourself."

"Zuko, it's the full moon and I'm sleepy. You do not want an angry water bender in such a closed place." She said. "Now read to me."

Zuko tiredly sighed, knowing this was not going to go anywhere until he bowed to her wishes. '_Let's just get this over with_' he thought, he cleared his throat and began reading.

_There was a time of constant daylight, a time of eternal summer. This caused the sun to be very weak. __Often he was __in the sky, with no rest, enveloping the world in its light. _

_This was until he found her. Luna was her name, serenely sipping tea under green umbrella trees in a garden. He was barely alive but her eyes, a piercing blue, saved him. _

_So he said, "Would it be all right__ i__f we just sat and talked for a little while__if in exchange for your time__I give you this smile?"_

_She said "That's okay, as long as you can make a promise not to break my little heart or leave me alone in the summer._

_And all turned golden as the day met the night. _

_They fell in love, the moon and the sun. One never daring to be without another. Even when the sun needed to return to the sky, the moon followed. The sun found balance and rest when the moon joined him._

_All was golden when the sun met the moon. _

"That doesn't make sense." Katara mumbled almost incoherently, her hands buried deeper in her arms.

"No, it doesn't." Zuko agreed, he was never a great story teller like his mother was, he felt as though he ruined the story by telling it in such an unworthy way.

"At least we finally found a necklace."

"Yeah, great."  
"Good night, Zuko."

"Good night."

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Zuko woke up the next morning, vaguely aware of the warm figure beside him. It took all the strength he had just so he won't run. He remembered removing her from the box, fearing she might destroy the scrolls under her weight. He also remembered letting her lean at his side before he slept.

In that moment, Zuko knew the spirits were laughing at him. Awkward little Zuko, stuck inside a locked vault while the person he's crazy for sleeps on his shoulder.

Before he could react, Katara woke beside him.

She looked up at him and smiled sleepily which Zuko awkwardly returned.

"Hey." Her voice was soft and melodic, though a little scratchy from sleep.

"Hey."

* * *

Suki and Toph both celebrated silently as Sokka slept in the back ground. Their plan was going on flawlessly, it wasn't long before the two would be together.

"Hey guys!" Aang called from down stairs. "Someone's here to see you." The two quickly ran from the room to Aang, immediately their hearts dropped.

There stood Ty Lee, in her Kyoshi warrior uniform, waving frantically. Beside her was Mai.

* * *

Oh god, that was crap. -_- forgive me please, I had the hardest time writing this chapter

The "story" is actually a song by Panic! At The Disco! When The Day Met The Night! Very beautiful song! TOtally Zutara, check it out!

**READ AND REVIEW! **


	5. Secret Mission Part One

"I still can't believe it."

The group, along with Aang, lounged around the sandy beach of Ember Island, the sun beaming down at them. They decided to have a break from all the working they've been doing for the wedding and just have a day of doing nothing, which was probably a bad idea since it was the day before the wedding but they didn't really care. The arrival of Mai had caused numerous plans to be reasoned as unusable. They needed this day to regroup and re-plan. And of course, relax.

"That Katara and Zuko like each other or that one girl can ruin all of our plans?"

"Neither, I mean, it's hard to miss all those moments Zuko and Katara keep having. What I can't believe is how Sokka helped lock his baby sister in a vault with Zuko."

"Hey!" Sokka said, offended. "I trust jerkbender! He had the weird honor thing he likes to talk about."

"Why so soon though?"

"The sooner the better. You never know, in a few years from now Zuko could be forced to marry Mai or something. Now's our only chance."

"I guess." Aang said in agreement. "Is there anything I can help with?"

"Right now, twinkletoes, all we need is a plan." Toph said. "Even ponytail over there is brain dead on plans." Before either Aang or Sokka could retort, she held up her hand to silence them. "Shhh, I can feel Katara coming."

Moments later, the young water bender bounded up right in front of them, looking very sour.

"Aw, Katara, are you okay?" Suki asked as soon as she saw her facial expression.

"Yeah," Aang nodded. "Is anything wrong?"

"Nothing." Her tone disagreeing with what she just said. "Finally go out of the vault with the help of Iroh and Mai." Her eyes darkened in anger at the mere mention of the girl. She was glowering until she remembered something and turned to Suki and Sokka. "Oh, Iroh's looking for you two. He said something about a mission of some sort." Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "What's that all about?"

Sokka and Suki turned to each other, a nervous smile on their lips.

"Nothing. Anyway, we're ganna go now bye." Sokka said in a rush before running off with Suki in tow.

She turned to face Aang, who only shrugged in return.

* * *

As soon as uncle had freed them form the vault, Zuko was immediately whisked away by a very impatient Mai, demanding for an explanation.

"You left! AGAIN!"

"It was for official matters."

"And I had to hear from Ty lee of all people that my so called boyfriend was hosting a wedding." She spat out the word boyfriend as though it was disgusting to her.

"Well, I'm sorry I forgot that I needed your permission for everything!" he said sarcastically with a roll of his eyes.

"YOU LEAVE ME AND YOU'RE THE ONE WHO'S ANGRY?"

"I DON'T ENJOY PEPLE CONSTANTLY FIGHTING WITH ME, NO BIG SURPRISE THERE!"

"I CANNOT BELIEVE YOU!"

Zuko scoffed "I don't have to take this." He turned his back and walked away from her.

"AND WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU'RE GOING?" She shouted at his retreating back.

"TO GO TO THE BATHROOM, OR WOULD YOU LIKE TO GUARD ME THERE TOO?"

"…I didn't even know she had any other emotion other than bored."

Zuko heard the group softly talk about him and Mai as he quietly drew near them. He hung his head in shame, _great, _he thought_, everyone heard our argument. _

Their talking subsided when he was closer, he could see Toph tell them about his approaching footsteps.

"Hey, Zuko." Aang greeted happily, as though he was oblivious of the fact he just had a fight.

"Uh, hey." He answered awkwardly.

"We heard your little fight with knife girl over there." Toph said as she jabbed her thumb at the direction of the house.

"Yeah, uhm, sorry about that." He rubbed the back of his neck, embarrassed by what they just heard.

Thankfully, everyone dropped the subject after that. Zuko guessed they felt bad for him. He placed himself by the edge of the group, beside Katara.

"C'mon, Toph." Aang called when Zuko settled himself down, using his arm as a cushion for his head. "I'll teach you how to swim."

"What? No! I wanna stay for the show." It took a few moments before Aang was able to lead – or for the better word drag – her out into the water, their hands clasped together in safety.

"Stop looking at me like that." Zuko said when he opened his right eye to find Katara sitting up, looking like she was sorry for him.

"Like what?"

"Like you pity me. Don't pity me." His tone annoyed.

"I'm not and I don't." she said defensively before laying back down again.

Side by side, they laid in silence. The water lapped at his feet, just like it did two nights before.

"Did you show Suki the necklace?"

"Yeah, she loves it."

"Great."

Pause.

"Did you miss her?"

"Who?"

"Mai."

"Like a tooth ache."

Laugh.

"I have another joke."

"Oh?"

"Yeah."

"I bet it sucks."

A sharp jab to his ribs.

"Would you just shut up and listen?"

" Fine, fine." A small smile plays on his lips, a first for that day.

"Where does the Earth King keep his armies?"

"Where?"

"In his sleevies." She giggles as her own joke.

"That's a horrible joke. The Earth King feels insulted by your usage of his name in your joke." A grin threatens to tug his lips.

He could hear her huff at his side. "Says Mister I-have-no-sense-of-humor." She mutters, her tone slightly teasing.

"If I remember correctly, I have made you laugh and you haven't made me."

"You're remembering wrong."

"No, you just aren't funny."

"I am funny!"

"Let it go, Katara."

Silence.

"What?"

"Nothing, you just said my name."

From the corner of his eye, he could see her blush. To his surprise, so does he. "I've said it before."

"Few times."

"And?"

"Nothing, I just like the way you say it."

For the first time in what feels like years, a real smile breaks through his features.

They fall into an easy rhythm of conversation, just as they always did. They laugh, light and effortless, easing their tensed muscles, relaxing them in a way no massage can ever do.

Every few moments, their hands would meet under the sand. They would immediately drawback, though not before feeling the electric current pass from their finger tips to their whole body.

They stayed that way even when the sun was slowly dropping down the sky, at least until Sokka and Suki came back with Ty Lee and Mai in tow. Sokka stood on top of the giant pill of sand, his hand slowly extending above him, in it was a kuai ball. "Today, we PLAY!"

Katara, Suki and Sokka formed one team while Ty lee, Mai and Zuko stayed in another, Aang chose to be the referee to keep Toph company.

Mai fired the first shot. She took breath, jumped up and aimed the ball to the other side. More specifically to Katara. Katara immediately saw this and kicked the ball away, unfortunately smacking Zuko at the back of his head.

Katara shot Mai a glance, only to mean one thing; _let the games begin._

The game ended with multiple injuries, though mostly it was Zuko who received the blows. The worst being the ball ending up frozen and hitting Zuko square on the face. This, of course, caused him to immediately lose consciousness.

"He'll be fine." Iroh said with a smile on his face and a dismissive hand. With the help of Aang's air bending, the two brought the unconscious fire bender back to the house. "He'll be up by the wedding."

Katara bite her lip in guilt as she watched the two bring the lifeless body back in.

"This is all your fault."

Katara turns to find Mai boredly inspecting her nails, her tone completely void of emotion.

"MY FAULT? HOW IS THIS MY FAULT?"

Mai comes toe to toe with her, her finger jabbing her hard. "Listen here, sugar queen, you may think you have him but you don't, okay? HE'S MINE!"

Before Katara could retort, Toph angrily steps between them. "I'm the only one who can call her sugar queen, got that?" Toph sends her a wave of sand, causing her to topple over. The group walks away, leaving Mai sitting and spitting out sand and Ty lee tending to her.

00000000000000000000

It was late at night, Katara was walking down the hall to her room when she heard it. A moan, soft and filled with pain. She turns her head to the origin of the noise, _Zuko's room_. She gingerly opens the door to find the fire bender sprawled on his bed, pain etched in his features. She uncorks her water skin and runs to his side.

"Shh," she softly said as she draws out water from her skin and starts healing his multiple wounds. "I'm here."

He opens a bleary at her, "Hey." He greets, his voice hoarse and soft.

"Hey."

A hand finds hers when she starts healing at a black and purple bruise on his leg. He squeezes in pain. Without thinking, she entwines their fingers together as he continues to squeeze in pain. She could see him grit his teeth, beads of sweat slipping down his face. It was a few moments before the pain stopped, a sigh of relief escaped his lips. He stops pressing her hand but doesn't pull away.

Suddenly, Katara feels drained. She wasn't as used to healing someone's whole body, even after the full moon.

He sees her tired figure and turns, "Stay."

Somehow, Katara was too tired to argue. The two tiredly fell asleep, their hands, as though forgotten, was still interlocked.

* * *

Iroh passed by Zuko's room, surprised to find the door ajar. He peeked inside to find Zuko sleeping soundly in his bed with Miss Katara sleeping on the chair beside him, their hands interlocked. The man smiled and closed the door quietly behind him.

* * *

**READ AND REVIEW!**

A huge ass thank you to everyone who reviewed the previous chapters, who placed this story in their alert and stuff and yeah thank you! It warms my heart to see that at least one person enjoys the things I write.

Sorry if I start not updating frequently. I am currently attending review classes to prepare me for the numerous collage entrances exams I'm about to take this coming school year. (Yes, sadly in the Philippines you have to take a test in every school you plan to apply to, I am applying to five.) Also, I apologize for the frequent grammar mistakes and yeah okay bye.


	6. Toph's Plan

"We can't sit and wait anymore." Toph said as she burst into Iroh's room with Aang, who trailed behind her; apologizing for Toph's rather impolite behavior.

"Good morning miss Toph, mister Aang." The old general greeted calmly, slowing blowing on his tea.

"Did you know Mai is here? As in Zuko's GIRLFRIEND Mai! She just ruined all our plans!" Toph ranted, pacing up and down the room.

"Not all our plans, Miss Beifong." Iroh said with a twinkle in his eye. "I still have a few tricks up my sleeve but if you wish, you could take matters in your own hands."

Toph smiled broadly. "I will." She said confidently before bowing to the man and walking out. "C'mon, twinkle toes, I got this."

Aang groaned and quickly bowed to Iroh then rushing off to Toph.

"Good luck!" Iroh called after hem; knowing fairly well of what they were going to do.

0000000000

As Sokka exited the courtyard, hand in hand with Suki, he breathed out a sigh of relief. _The ceremony was a success!_ When the couple finally disappeared into the house, the two broke out of this formal façade and smiled broadly. The two turned to each other and hugged tightly. Neither of them moved or spoke, they merely stayed rooted to their spot. At least, until a voice broke in.

"Well, don't let us interrupt."

The two turned to find the rest of the gang, smiling at them. Aang, Toph and Katara quickly rushed towards the couple and incased the newly married couple in a hug while Zuko awkwardly stayed behind, only to be called by Sokka. "C'mon, jerkbender. We've already talked about this, group hugs are a requirement."

Zuko slowly walked over, his head ducked to hide the small smile forming on his lips.

"At least Appa isn't here to lick us."

000000000000000000

To Sokka's request, the food was swiftly served as soon as everyone was settled down. Team Avatar, as everyone had taken a liken to call them, sat in one table at the courtyard, near the covered pathway. Every few minute people would stop to congratulate the couple causing Sokka's mouth filled with food to incoherently thank them.

"You'd think getting married would instill some manners in him." Katara said as Sokka thanked some people from the Earth Kingdom, spitting out food in the process.

"It was a wedding, Katara, not magic." Toph answered.

The group laughed as Sokka glared, cheeks bulging with food.

* * *

Zuko uneasily laughed; distracted by the glares Mai kept shooting his way from her table with the Kyoshi Warriors. Technically she was his date for the event but when Sokka showed him the seating plans, he was forced to sit in the group's table, not that he minded. He'd rather sit and talk with the group and continue to be glared at from a far than to get into another fight with Mai. Besides, he still needed to talk to Katara.

He woke that morning before she did, their hands still loosely clasped together. He slowly slipped away from her and headed straight for the bathroom, hoping – _praying_ – that he could understand any of the things that had been happening to him that past week. When he finally came out of the bathroom, she was already gone. A note stating she needed to go to the west wing of the house to help Suki get ready was placed on the chair she had slept in.

Now, he was placed right beside her, still hoping that the Spirits smite him down.

"Alright, everyone." Hakoda happily called out from his table after everyone finished eating. "I think it's time for the couple's first dance!"

The crowd cheered as Sokka nervously led Suki to the dance floor.

000000000000

Everyone started to tickle into the dance floor after the couple had finished their first song. Zuko melted into the background, hoping to be ignored during all the merriment.

He watched enviously as Katara danced with different people, a giant smile on her face.

"Dance with me."

"I don't want to."

The bored voice beside him suddenly turned demanding. "I said dance with me."

"Stop forcing me and just leave me alone."

Zuko finally turned to see the insulted expression on Mai's face. "Fine. We're done here." She hissed and stalked away. Zuko merely raised his eyebrow at her retreating figure, feeling indifferent.

It was a while before he was approached by someone again.

"Hey, Zuko?"

Zuko looked up to find Suki, in her Kyoshi Warrior makeup and ceremonial robes, smiling slyly at him.

"Will you dance with me?"

He shifted awkwardly from side to side. "Uh, Suki, I don't really-"

"Great!" she smiled and dragged him to the dance floor. He sighed in defeat, it was her wedding after all, and he wasn't really in the mood to fight the leader of the Kyoshi warriors when her whole group was here.

The two bowed to each other and started to dance somewhat formally. Being royalty, he was familiar with almost every dance from the different nations. Having all his teachers when he was a child practically drum it into his brain.

"I guess I haven't formally congratulated you for the wedding."

"Thank you." She said gracefully.

The two continued to make small talk as they danced. Once or twice he would dip her, earning a giggle from the warrior. The song ended with a polite applause from the crowd. Zuko bowed at her and made a motion to leave but before he could do so, someone tapped his shoulder.

Zuko and Suki turned to find Sokka and Katara standing before them. The four bowed to each other, giant smiles on Suki and Sokka's features.

"Mind if I cut in?" Sokka asked. He reached over to encase Suki's hand in his. He smiled at the pair and left without another word.

For a moment, the two stood awkwardly, watching as the people around them found partners and bowed to each other. They finally met each other's eyes and smiled shyly. Zuko bowed gracefully at her causing her to blush and giggle. As the music started, they moved closer but at arm's length.

The music was slower than what they had expected. Around them, couples started shuffling closer. Without meeting each other's eye, they moved even closer together.

"So I broke up with Mai." He said, almost conversationally.

"How do you feel?"

"Like I just came from a fever, a little weak but okay."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"No, it's fine."

"What do you want to do then?"

"Dance." He simply said, a real smile broke though his features.

0000000000000000000000000

Once again, Katara and Zuko lay side by side the sandy beaches of Ember Island, still in their ceremonial robes. The wedding ended hours ago, all of the guests were sleeping soundly back in the house while they stayed outside, under the moon and the stars.

"This week has been absolutely _perfect_." Katara sighed happily.

Zuko laughed, almost bitter. "You're blind and insane."

She considered what he said for a moment. "Okay maybe not totally perfect but it's getting there."

"Katara, this week alone I have; cleaned my own courtyard for someone else's wedding, got locked in a vault, rendered unconscious by a kuai ball and broke up with my girl friend. It's not really my best week."

"Oh." Her voice small and disappointed. "Do you want her back cause I can-"

"It's not that." He sighed, cutting her off. "I just think about all the time I wasted just arguing with her when I could be doing something I actually wanted to do."

"What's that?"

He finally turned to her. She blushed when their eyes meet, her features turned into an earnest smile.

'_Win you over'_ "I don't know."

Her gaze turned to the moon, that was high above her. "Well you wanna know what I want to do?"

"What?"

"Night swimming!"

She let out a shout of happiness before running into the water, ceremonial robes and all. Her laughter echoed all around the beach. Zuko's eyes grew wide in panic and quickly looked around. He sighed in relief when he saw that they're alone.

"C'mon, fire lord!" Katara called from the water, her tone taunting. "Don't tell me you're afraid of a little water."

A wicked grin spread through his feature. He quickly ran to the water and joined her. When he finally reached her, something golden caught his eye.

"You're wearing my mom's necklace." He said, his tone light and disbelieving.

She blushed as Zuko moved closer to touch the piece of jewelry. "Yeah. Uhm, Suki said it matched my robes better than it matched hers so she gave it to me. Is that okay?"

"Yeah, I'm glad you wore it."

"Well, it is a beautiful necklace. So is the story behind it."

"I thought it didn't make sense."

"I actually understand now how much the sun needs the moon to make him smile." A small smile danced on her lips, her blue eyes twinkled like the stars above them.

"I always thought the moon needed the sun to add a little excitement to her increasingly aging life. "

The smirk on his face was immediately wiped off his face by the slap of the water. He quickly retaliated and splashed her with water. Katara let out a shriek of laughter and bended the water to engulf him in a wave.

He grabbed her hand to steady himself, causing her to be dragged down to the water with him. The two look at each other and blush. They laughed nervously as they stood up.

"Or maybe the moon and the sun need each other to balance their annoying personalities." Katara and Zuko quickly whipped around to find Aang and Toph casually strolling by, as though they didn't see the two.

"I think you're right, Toph." Aang's tone was overly casual. "The sun and the moon do need each other."

Katara and Zuko stared at them dumbfounded. It was Zuko who regained his voice first.

"What exactly are you intoning?"

Toph slapped her forehead in exasperation. "ARE YOU TWO REALLY _THAT_ STUPID? KATARA YOU LIKE ZUKO, ZUKO YOU LIKE KATARA! There. Done. I can't believe we wasted a week planning when we could have done that."

Aang took one look at Zuko and Katara's features before grabbing hold of Toph and encasing them in a protective air bubble. He narrowly missed the blast of fire and water the couple sends their way before flying to safety.

* * *

"What do we do now, Iroh?" Aang asked as soon as he and Toph landed safely on the terrace of Iroh's room, overlooking the beach.

"Now, we just let nature take its course on the two of them below."

"Aw, C'mon, Iroh!" Toph whined "I bet I can lock their feet in the sand until they get together!"

"No, Miss Beifong. I have a feeling things will come sooner than expected." He clamped his hands on both their shoulders and steered them away from the terrace. "Why don't I teach you kids the lovely game of pai-sho?"

The two groaned but complied. They were already near the door when something caught his eye. He turned slightly and smiled. He followed the young benders out the door, praying that Sokka was not there to see his little sister kiss the fire lord.

* * *

So there, anti climatic isn't it? I hope you enjoyed reading this, this fic is actually the fastest I've ever completed. Thank you to all my reviewers, favorite-ers and alert-ers. Thank you everyone, bye.:) - Pink


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